The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
She knows that I've been doing something wrong
But she won't say anything
She thinks that I was with my friends yesterday
But she won't mind me lying
Because
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will hide the murderer
It breaks the cage
And fear escapes and takes possession
Just like a crowd rioting inside
Make me do this, make me do that
Make me do this, make me do that
Am I the cat that takes the bird
To her the hunted, not the hunter?
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will hide the murderer
Mother hides the madman
Mother will stay mum
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will stay mum
Stands for comfort
But she won't say anything
She thinks that I was with my friends yesterday
But she won't mind me lying
Because
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will hide the murderer
It breaks the cage
And fear escapes and takes possession
Just like a crowd rioting inside
Make me do this, make me do that
Make me do this, make me do that
Am I the cat that takes the bird
To her the hunted, not the hunter?
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will hide the murderer
Mother hides the madman
Mother will stay mum
Mother stands for comfort
Mother will stay mum
Stands for comfort
Lyrics submitted by weezerific:cutlery, edited by Mellow_Harsher
Mother Stands For Comfort Lyrics as written by Kate Bush
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
This song is ment to be from the point of view of kates son. She is singing for her son who kills people etc but because she is a mother she will always keep him safe what ever he does
I agree with you about this song being about a son who's a murderer who's mother "hides the madman" that's inside him but i really don't think it's about KATE'S son. lol.
@borg130 Kate's son kills people??
this song helps me understand sortof why my mum has left me, but at the same time tells me that even though she isn with me she wants to be
this song is actually sang from the prospective of a murderer who finds solace in his mother. he knows his mum will always love him.
IMHO... Mother Stands For Comfort is a weird song, a dangerous lullaby to sing you to sleep... The 'shattering' evokes Babooshka... Another song of lies and deceit... But in MSFC, the son expects - and will make - his mother play her part...
Initially, the song had me asking What does 'son' stand for? What does 'mother' stand for? ... Society 'imprisons' us all in stereotypical expectations. From Trisha to Springer, mothers who don't stand for comfort are either demonised or psycho-pathologised as 'failed mothers'. The mother of this song seemed caged in 'the prison of motherhood' by her son's wrong, caught between a rock and a hard place, and desperate for moral expression. Then I thought of Hitchcock's Psycho!
'She knows...' (mother's intuition? or is he paranoid schizophrenic?) ... 'something wrong...' (crime? OR overharsh super-ego/maternal identification? Negative Oedipus Complex?) 'But she won't say anything... But she won't mind me lying... Because...' (Has he already killed her for comfort? Is she mummifying in the chair?)
The 'madman' has gone over the edge... He has murdered the mother to keep her 'mum'*! ... He has made her play her ghastly comforting part...
The schizophrenic repercussion unleashes mad fearful imaginings. It breaks the cage of mental stability, provoking him to do dreadful things... There is a terrible, twisted lucidity... The cat/bird expresses social breakdown, mental disorder and role-reversal; and the maternal-hunter/food-gatherer has become the hunted prey...
Just like Babooshka's husband, we are lulled by the sound of MSFC only for it to shatter our expectations...
*He kills his mother to keep her mum... In England, mum=mother & to 'stay mum' means to say nothing of the secret you know!
This song is incredibly crafted poetry... and offers many readings and meanings... Another meaning might be that 'She' (the cat's mother, the child's mother) knows (intuitively or otherwise) that something wrong has taken place involving the child ('doing'/'do'), but She won't say anything (refuses to? turns away?). Is the wrong 'unspeakable'? Is the truth? (hence the child lying)... The mother is hiding the murderer/madman... The murderer ("It" = dehumanised reference) breaks the cage, gets into the house... The child is overwhelmed by fear, and made to do this and that... 'Am I the cat... bird...' = Metaphorically, the child becomes wild/other, a domesticated animal taking dead things to 'her' (her=non-mother?)... The 'bird' symbolizes the child's dead heart/soul and disclosures... The child is hunted/hounded, and is not a capable seeker in life... "Mother Stands For Comfort"... just as those plaques remind us... but this 'mother' is not comforting the child... Rather, she is hiding the madman and murderer of the child's heart... She is 'staying mum' ...
Theresa, amazing interpretations - I think you're very spot on.
I always thought that this song was a reference to self injuring. The self destructing teenager and her mother that didn't want to know about it or accept that her daughter is in pain and making bad choices..the mom would rather just be ignorant and believe the excuses her kid makes instead of confronting the problems.
I think people are reading too much into this one, like most of Kate's work I believe this is based on literature or Alfred Hitchhock's psycho. The song is from the point of view of a murderer or someone who's done horrible, unspeakable things and knows that no matter what he does his mother will think of him as a child always and protect him, it's about someone who idolises his mother. It's also about how the mother will never see him for the monster he knows he is "to her the hunted, not the hunter" the song itself is sinister but it also sounds cocky, like he's pleased he can slip past her. She'll hide him and be his alibi always.
I strongly feel Kate's music is meant to be "read too much into". It's what makes it rich, invigorating, timeless.<br /> <br /> After all, "Hounds of Love" is the mother of all pop concept albums.
I always thought it was poignant how "Mother Stands for Comfort", and the following song "Cloudbusting", are thematically very similar. Both songs deal with the way people, particularly family, defend each other against the persecution of society. There is an element of blindness when it comes to protecting a person we love. Kate is conflicted in this song about the balance that is upset by a destructive force, and the instinct to hide what is destructive in ourselves and in the ones we love. How do we come to terms with the duality and moral ambiguity within ourselves, much less the world at large?
So interesting seeing other views. For 20+ years was certain this was about young girl's abortion the day before. Mom is thrilled with daughter's choice as it makes her life easier, and if she pretends she didn't know, no guilt. No messing up plans in motion. Never questions her being with "friends". Mother for comfort? Not in this song. One mother takes a life, as the other silently encourages it.